PCT: Fisher Lake to Etna Summit

Stats:

We enjoyed our coffee watching the sun climb into the sky and then took an early morning swim at Fisher lake.   It was sublime, refreshing and felt like freedom.   We shared the water with cute little salamanders and waved at the hikers walking  by.  It’s a warm lake and was the perfect start to our day.  

More burn scar today, but lots of flowers and also a few sections of green forest.   Mount Shasta, our companion for the last 11 days, was shining in splendor.  I’m going to miss that mountain.  

We had a brief chat with Saunterre, who we met last week.   We also asked a European young man why he was walking the trail.   He said that COVID lockdown got him thinking about his life and what he wanted to experience.  He’s taking a year off college to hike this trail and explore a bit of the world.  

Hawkeye has loved all the visiting, but being a bit more cat like, I don’t think I’d choose to hike against the flow of hikers again.  At times, it’s been interesting and fun chatting trailside, but over all there has just been too many people for me.  

As for the mosquitoes, they’ve been plentiful too, and they never bit me.   It is my new super power.   I’m thinking one of the many supplements I take for my autoimmune issues must make me smell weird to them.  

We have now officially completed section hiking California.  Bust open the Champagne.  Cue the band.  Next year onward to Oregon.  

Here I lie in Etna park, surrounded by hikers, waiting for Hawkeye to come back with our truck to pick me up.  We used our motorcycle as a shuttle again.  One European young lady is sick with Covid.  I hear her coughing.  She looks terrible.   Poor dear.  A big group of hikers are having a barbecue, and there is one guy with a computer and microphone set up doing his videos for YouTube.  I saw the flags at half staff at the nearby police station and discovered that the Japanese prime minister was assassinated.  

Take me to the backcountry quick, this front country is just too much.  

(Post note:  when Mark got to Mount Ashland, KZed, from Australia, that we keep bumping into, was crossing the road.    It’s been strange how we keep serendipitously meeting him. We wonder if this means something or is just purely coincidence?)